


The First Believer

by Zaydie



Category: Artemis Fowl - Eoin Colfer, Rise of the Guardians (2012)
Genre: Gen, Reader-Insert, There are literally no pronouns in this, You can be any gender
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-20
Updated: 2019-03-09
Packaged: 2019-10-13 08:03:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 14
Words: 18,012
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17484296
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Zaydie/pseuds/Zaydie
Summary: Takes place before the Artemis Fowl series (to be honest, you don't even have to know the series to be able to read this - just know he's a condescending prick who is, unfortunately, also a genius).The events of RotG mostly tend to happen in the background, but still affect Reader. The only defining trait Reader has is the fact that you are trusting towards others - no descriptions are ever really made about you.------Real summary time. What if, instead of kidnapping Holly Short, Artemis found another way to fund the search for his father? He's created an app, aptly named Panacea, which supposedly will do pretty much everything for a user. Naturally, Artemis has some other backhanded plans for it...You are a beta tester, visiting your aunt and uncle in Burgess, when an unusual bug in Panacea's weather prediction causes the app to contact the developer.What follows is an adventure more magical than you'd ever imagined could exist.





	1. Snow Day

**Author's Note:**

> Hello, all! I made this fic mostly as a personal test to push my comfort boundaries in writing. When I realized I was falling back on an old habit of not using pronouns for the reader, I thought - well heck, why not upload it?  
> Note: when I say 'not using pronouns,' I'm specifically referring to a lack of any. There is no she, he, or they that is used to refer to you.  
> Also, I will put a warning on the chapter that has violence.  
> If an extra chapter is requested, I can also do that? Otherwise, the story's complete, so no worries about it becoming abandoned.
> 
> Enjoy!

_You should spend some time outside, get some sunshine._

My aunt's words rang through my head as I tugged on a light jacket.

 _The whole reason I came was to spend time with family_ , I thought grumpily. Still, it wasn't like I could blame her for suddenly being called into work. My uncle was out with my dad, and though they had promised to be back by dinner, I knew better than to hope my dad wouldn't get caught up in chatting.

“Hey _Swooped Girl,_ ” I called, glad I was alone.

“What can I help you with?” replied the AI on my phone. It was some revolutionary do-all app that I had signed up to beta test. So far, it was doing alright – it actually responded to the dorky name it gave itself, which was more than I could say for my phone's default system.

“What's the weather like outside?” I asked.

“Clear skies for the next four hours, followed by light rain. It's a little cold, though – make sure to wear a light to medium sized coat!” I rolled my eyes at her descriptions.

“Log the start of a walk,” I told her, putting the device into my pocket. “And play my songs on shuffle.”

“Walk started. Now playing music to suit your mood...”

“Wha-?” I pulled the phone back out, doing a double take when I saw that it had created a playlist of 'grumpy' songs for me. “How do you know what I'm feeling?” I asked. When I didn't get a response, I huffed. “ _Swooped Girl_ ,” I repeated, really wishing I could just change the damned name. “How do you know what I'm feeling?”

“I automatically analyze your vocal tones,” she replied. “If you're looking for an outlet, I recommend your favourite sport. Releasing endorphins can be very-”

“Mute,” I grumbled. “You can tell me what to do once you finish figuring out my favourite sport, you dummy.” It had supposedly been 'analyzing' my activities for a few days, stating that it would be done by next Thursday.

Overall, I was actually pretty happy with the app. It gave me reminders for any activities I wanted to do, and let me do some kind of daily audio diary thing that it formatted into a nice visual calendar of my trending moods. If I couldn't think of a word, it even had a setting to snap a picture of an expression, and _Swooped Girl_ would suggest words for it. If I didn't accept any of them, I would just leave the photo as part of my visual trend, instead of one of the preset colours.

I stepped outside, instantly wishing I'd gone with the 'medium' part of my phone's advice. It was chillier than I expected. All the same, I would just take a short loop around to the park and back – that way I could tell my folks that I _had_ been outside.

I figured I would stay at the park a little while, and sit on the swings until I felt like leaving. As soon as I began pumping my legs, I heard a light voice over my music.

“Switching activity to running.” There weren't many people at the park – just a few kids in the more open, field-ish section – so I actually responded.

“No, _Swooped Girl,_ I'm on the swings.”

“Adding 'the swings' to your list of activities. Please pick a suitable picture when convenient.” I tapped the picture of a swingset, confused at what the alternative photos were actually supposed to be.

I went back to swinging, watching the kids idly as my music picked back up. A few moments later, a few of the kids cried out, and suddenly they were all squealing, pointing at the sky. I blinked, taking a moment to figure out what they were so excited about.

... And then I saw the first flakes. I frowned. Hadn't my phone said clear skies? I didn't have boots on. Surely this would only be a light snow, a few minutes long at most.

Apparently not. Only a minute later, it was as if a swarm of white locusts had suddenly decided to prey upon the playground. I got off my swing, shivering a little at the sudden wind.

“ _Swooped Girl_ ,” I started, bringing my phone close so I wouldn't have to speak very loudly. “It's snowing.”

“My data states that the skies will be clear for another four hours. If you are seeing white spots in your vision, I recommend visiting a local doctor, or calling your family one.”

“I'm not seeing spots, _Swoop_ , it's actually _snowing._ Like, seriously crazy-cold-windy-snow. I feel like I'm about to be in the middle of the storm.”

“May I turn on the camera?” she asked. One thing I loved – she always asked before using my camera or microphone.

“Yes,” I told her, since I still wasn't as comfortable with the colloquialisms she claimed I could use. I held it up, showing her a nice, panoramic view of the street in front of me. I was high tailing it home as fast as I could, not wanting to get a cold because of this.

“I will forward this information to the developer of my algorithms. In the meantime, would you like me to prepare a list of things that will benefit your mood when you arrive home?”

“Yeah, whatever, sure,” I grumbled. I kept trudging forward, shocked at how fast it was coming down. I heard a squeal of either terror or delight, and remembered the kids from the park.

“Shit,” I murmured, turning to look back. Luckily, it wasn't so thick that I couldn't see them. They were actually still playing around, despite being underdressed.

“Hey, _Swooped Girl_ ,” I said, hesitating. “Would you expect this kind of snow to get worse, as time goes on?”

“I am afraid my algorithms are unable to say at this point. May I use your camera?”

“Yes,” I told her.

“Please point the camera towards the skies.” I did so.

“Lower slightly and rotate 360 degrees.”

“Repeat the process.” I kept following her instructions, freezing my poor fingers off in the process.

“The snow shows no signs of slowing, but I am unable to get clear views of the clouds to confirm.”

“How helpful,” I grumbled. “Would you recommend small kids stay indoors?”

“Yes, that would be wise, unless they are wearing appropriate snow apparel.” I cursed under my breath, and jogged over to the kids. In my ear, I heard Swoop tell me that she was starting a log for running.

“Hey,” I called out, when I was close enough. The kids were slowing down now, but paused completely to stare at me. “You guys, it's too cold to be out in just sweaters. How about you head home and put something warmer on?”

“But we're not cold,” one of them protested.

“You might not feel cold,” I agreed. “But if you stay outside without coats on, you could get sick, and then you wouldn't get to play at all!” A few of them pondered this.

“I guess we should at least get hats,” another mumbled. “But we'll come right back!” With that, they began rushing in various directions, some together and some alone. At first, I was inclined to follow and make sure they got home alright, but then I saw that a few of them actually lived right on this street. I sighed, then dug my hands into my pockets and began walking across the now-snowy field.

“Starting log for walk,” Swooped Girl stated over my music.

“Yeah, yeah,” I replied. “Get me a recipe for cocoa or something, would you? I can't feel my toes.”

“If you are lacking feeling in your toes, you should speak with your-”

“It's an expression!” I retorted.

“Finding a recipe for hot cocoa with milk.” I blinked, surprised she knew that I preferred milk.

“... Thank you.” There was no reply, of course. After all, Swooped Girl was just a robot.

 


	2. The Developer

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For future reference, I'll be updating this fic about 2-3 times a week.   
> Also, I don't advise for anyone to actually try the cocoa recipe written here? I've been told it's much better to put cocoa powder in first, and add only a little bit of milk to begin with. Then you mix it into a paste and gradually add more milk so it blends better.

“Okay, let's see that recipe,” I said, walking inside. I took off my coat, waiting expectantly. “... Right. I keep forgetting I need to say your name. _Swooped Girl_ , show me the cocoa recipe.”

“Would you prefer to print it, display it on your phone, or have it read out?” she asked. I kicked my boots off, putting them on the rack.

“Reading it out is good,” I told her. “I'm ready.”

“Very well. Begin by taking out cocoa powder and milk.” I opened the fridge and pulled out the milk. “Regarding today's weather, would you be interested in a discussion with the developer?”

“Hm? Oh, yes, sure. Open up an email for after this. Probably important that they fix whatever happened there.”

“Understood. Would you like to use the microwave or the stove for your cocoa?”

“I'm only making one cup!” I pointed out. “The microwave.”

“Very well. Fill the desired glass or cup with milk, then add one to two teaspoons of cocoa.” I followed her instructions, automatically stirring it.

“How long do I microwave it for?” I asked.

“After a stir, microwave it for a minute, stir it again, and then microwave it for another minute.” I did so, grabbing a chair while I waited the sixty seconds.

“I have successfully connected you with the developer. May I put your phone on speaker mode?”

“Wait, what?! You _called_ him?!”

“No, I put forward a request for contact. He responded, and I accepted the call for you. Would you like to turn on speaker mode?”

“Oh my god, Swoop, you're not supposed to automatically answer phone calls! What if I was in class?!”

“You put your phone on silent during class, so calls would automatically be declined. However, your setting is on ringer, currently. May I turn on speaker mode?”

“Wh- fine. Yes.” There was a beep from the microwave, followed by a click from my phone.

“... Hello. I take it you can hear me now?” I paused with my hand outstretched towards my milky cocoa.

... The developer sounded like a _child_.

“Uh, yes. Sorry, I didn't realize the app wanted me to, uh, speak with you in person. I was just gonna write an email.”

“This is faster. Now, have you noticed any bugs, aside from the weather portion of the app?”

“Other- Erm..” I pondered this, stirring my cocoa. “I dunno if it's a bug, but she sometimes puts really weird songs into playlists.” The guy hummed, and I heard him write something down.

“Nothing as drastic, though?”

“No, just the storm. It's been really cool to try, otherwise. It's definitely more convenient to have her automatically track my activities.”

“I see,” he murmured, apparently not actually concerned with what worked. “Can you allow her to send me the video feed of the storm?”

“Sure. Hey, Swooped Girl, send the developer anything from my walk this morning.”

“Sending data now...” I heard a light blip, followed by what sounded like wind in speakers. Every now and then, I heard the app ask to be lowered and rotated and whatnot. It didn't finish until my cocoa was out of the microwave for the second time.

“.... I don't suppose you have any images or video of the sky beforehand?” the kid asked.

“No, I don't usually stop to take pictures of stuff,” I admitted. He hummed again. Despite sounding like he was ten years old, he was acting pretty mature. I summed it up to bad speakers.

“Can you describe it for me?” he asked.

“Erm... The sky was mostly blue, but there were some clouds here and there.”

“And what did the clouds look like?” I heard some more scribbles.

“Pretty big, and puffy. Like cotton candy?” I took a sip of my cocoa, but quickly put it down when my tongue got burned.

“Interesting...”

“Uh... okay?”

“I'll be looking more into this. Unfortunately, you're the only beta tester currently in this area, so I don't have anything to cross check this with. Would it be possible to record weather during the rest of your stay, to isolate what caused the... bug?”

“Uhh... Sure thing, I guess. Is it okay if I just take a picture out a window, or do I need to go outside?”

“A window is fine, provided there is a clear view of the sky.”

“Yeah, okay. I can do that.”

“Thank you. If that's all, then I really must get back to work.”

“O-oh, right, yeah. Sure thing. Have a good day.”

“The same to you.” He hung up, and I blinked, looking outside.

“What the-”

The skies were clear.

 


	3. The Meeting

The next few days passed by without much drama. I noticed, a few times, that the app was still getting the weather wrong, but each time I got a single lined message. _The developer has taken in the data and is working on fixing this issue._

I sighed. When I'd signed up for the beta, I'd been told it was a pretty big thing – but as I was finding out, it was apparently bigger in Europe than America. Granted, I wasn't in a very big city... but weather wasn't exactly city-specific, was it?

We had more snow than I thought was even allowed in April, but my uncle assured me that it was very normal for us to have flash storms. He even went so far as to tease me for trying to shuffle kids home whenever they arose.

One day, I got a message – via text.

 

_Unknown Number: Are you available today? - AF_

 

I frowned, trying to figure out who it could be. When I drew up blanks, I replied.

 

_Me: I think you have the wrong number._

 

There was a reply almost instantly.

 

_Unknown Number: My apologies. I should have been more specific. I am the developer of the app 'Panacea,' which you are beta testing._

 

I took a moment to add his number as a contact before replying.

 

_Me: Oh. I think I'm free after 3, if that works. My relatives wanted to show me some kind of museum thing._

_Developer: Understood. I'll contact you then._

 

I tucked my phone away, turning my attention back to wherever we were driving. Truth be told, I wasn't very interested in museums, and would've much preferred to be talking with the developer about Panacea, but I also didn't want to be rude to my family.

As we were arriving at the museum, we had another flash storm, as my uncle called them. I didn't even blink at this point, just shivering before rushing inside. I took a quick picture, sending it to the developer quickly.

Almost instantly, I had a reply.

 

_Developer: Where, specifically, is this? Are you able to take another picture, or a short video?_

 

I quickly rattled off the address and headed back out to get a quick video. Then, to avoid having to tour the museum, I dawdled around pretending to look for the bathroom. When I eventually found my relatives again, they were already halfway through the tour. I lingered at the back, making up my own stories for the artifacts we passed – pointedly changing the tales that our guide was droning on about.

At exactly three, when we were just driving down the street to my aunt and uncle's house, my phone buzzed.

 

_Developer: Does 3 still work?_

_Me: Yeah, there's nothing else planned for today._

_Developer: Great. Are you able to go to Manstrou Park?_

_Me: I s'pose so. Give me ten minutes._

 

“Dad, I'm going to the park,” I said, hopping out of the car.

“Alright,” he replied. “Don't stay out too late.”

“I won't,” I promised, then headed on my way. Soon enough, I was at the park. It was still lightly snowing, but this time I'd worn a proper coat, so I was fine. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed a guy who looked like he was a professional wrestler.

... At a park? I felt goosebumps on my arms.

 

_Me: Oki dokes, I'm here. Did you want more pictures of the sky or something?_

 

At first, there was no response. Then the wrestler guy started walking my way, along with a kid I wasn't familiar with. I felt a little uncomfortable, and quickly looked around to see if anyone else was here. I hopped off the swings, heading towards a street that was conveniently _away_ from this guy.

He turned, heading in the same direction that I was.

_That can't be good._ I started to speedwalk, but before I could start an all-out run, the kid made a calling noise. I looked over.

“Where are you going?” the boy asked. I frowned, pausing. His expression was both curious and sinister, somehow. The man with him, on the other hand, was impossibly blank.

“Uhh, just walking,” I told him. He frowned, looking at his phone.

“Are you not the beta tester, then?” I blinked.

No. Way.

“Wait... oh, is this the developer?” I took another look at the giant beside him. The boy huffed.

“No, _I_ am the developer. Artemis Fowl the Second.” He held out his hand. I blinked, and shook it. His grip was weak, but unlike most kids, I could tell he was at least trying to make an impression by having a firm shake. I decided to try and give him the benefit of the doubt.

“I, um. Oh. Well, congrats on... the app.” I felt my usual lack of words settle in, both familiar and unwanted. Cue the inward sigh. “I... didn't expect you to actually come all this way, though. Were the pictures bad quality?” I asked.

“No,” he replied curtly. “They provided adequate information. I'm here because I needed more data, which I wasn't certain you would be able to retrieve. After all, I'm sure you have your own plans.”

“You could've asked,” I told him. But he'd already waved it off. “So why did you need to come here?”

“I needed to analyze the flash storms,” he informed me. “In depth. In your opinion, what do you believe the cause to be?” I blanked.

“... Umm... I dunno, I figured it was a natural phenomenon. Like flash floods in the desert!” He narrowed his eyes, but seemed to accept the idea.

“I see. This will do just fine, then.” And with that, he turned away.

“Wh- Hey, didn't you need me for anything?” I asked. “Those were all questions you could've asked over text!” He paused a moment, back turned to me. Then, of course, my phone buzzed.

 

_Developer: I need you to come back here at 10:00 AM tomorrow._

 

I rolled my eyes. This is what I got for trusting some kid. 

 


	4. Jack Frost

I sat on the swings at exactly 9:56, proud of myself for finally being on time for something. I began to pump my legs, worried that he wasn't going to show. Naturally, my phone buzzed before I saw him.

 

_Developer: I believe a flash storm is about to start. I want you to observe the children and tell me what happens._

 

I felt my fingers twitch.

 

_Me: Aren't_ you _here?!_

_Developer: I will be observing from a secondary perspective._

 

I rolled my eyes, still not certain that this storm would even happen. Whenever I asked my uncle or tried to look up any information about them, I was told they were completely random events.

But when I noticed something cold touching my hand, I looked up. My eyes zoned in, instantly, to the kids. A snowball was thrown, and they began laughing. We'd had a few storms consecutively, so there was still some leftover snow for them to toss around. I tried to follow the action, but it honestly just looked like a bunch of kids having fun to me.

 

_Me: I feel like a stalker. All I'm doing is watching a snowball fight._

_Developer: Interesting. Head to the side street. I believe I've isolated the cause of the storms._

 

I tugged my coat tighter, and walked towards the idling vehicle. A window was rolled down as I drew near.

“Oh, I get it now. You didn't want to be cold,” I accused him.

“Correction. I didn't want to be seen. The storms are being caused by a man.”

“Wh-” I briefly panicked, looking behind me. “Where is he?”

“Currently, he is watching the children...” Artemis said lowly. “But I do not believe he will do anything else. I suggest we act after they leave.”

“Shouldn't we call the cops or something?” I asked, nervously. “There's gotta be some kinda law against changing the weather.”

“Good luck convincing them of my theories,” he replied dryly. “No, I believe we will still require more information. Are you comfortable with confronting him?”

“Wh- _Me?!_ ”

“Yes, you. What, would you prefer a child – such as myself – be the one to approach him?”

“I- Nh- what about this guy? The one who's literally driving your car?”

“Something tells me if Butler were to approach, the man would run quickly.” I sucked in a breath, watching the kids play. “If it helps, you can activate the tracker in your phone. There are better chances of keeping you safe if Butler and I are ready to step in, as well.”

“Augh, fine, whatever,” I finally grumbled, to get him to shut up. At this point, I was tempted to just say that making snowstorms was fine and I didn't care – but something about this entire thing seemed suspicious. I went back to my place on the swings, pumping up and down until I felt like I was flying. I watched as one by one, the kids eventually decided to go home.

 

_Me: I don't see him._

_Developer: He's just outside your sight line. Behind the tree line – go now._

 

I hopped off the swings, stumbling in the snow before picking myself up. I walked towards the tree line where Artemis and his bodyguard waited in the car. Just beyond the trees, there would be a man...

My jaw dropped as my eyes took in the sight of him.

His hair was as white as the snow beneath my feet, and his sweater was laced with frost. His pants, brown, leathery and cracked, barely stretched over his shins.

And he was barefoot.

“H... Hey,” I said, a little softly. He was carrying a shepherd's crook, swinging it around as he walked towards a lake just down a hill.

“Hey!” I called, a little louder. His head turned, barely, looking towards me. A beat passed, and his expression narrowed. He looked back, towards the lake, and then towards me.

“Who are you... talking to...?” He tilted his head, confusion etched in his expression. I blanked. How dense could this guy be?

“Did....” Oh, god, I felt stupid just asking. I swallowed, my eyes flashing to the car on the street, and back to this... guy. “Did you cause the storms?” I asked. The man, who had been leaning on his crook as he waited for me, nearly fell. I instinctively reached out to help him – but he didn't fall all the way, and stood back up as quickly as he'd gone down.

“Wait,” he said, and I froze. “You can see me?” I blinked.

“What, did you think you were wearing some kind of invisibility cloak?” I asked. He sucked in a breath, a hand going to his mouth.

“Oh, my god... You.... you can see me!” He laughed, as giddy as a child, hopping and twirling around.

“E-er, don't act _so_ excited,” I mumbled, right as he did a backflip.

“You- You don't understand! You can see me! Nobody's been able to see me before!” I blinked.

“What?” He didn't reply, squishing me into a hug. Even through my coat, his arms were _freezing_.

“This is- this is amazing!” he cried, letting go of me to look at my face.

“I- Erm...” I paused, uncomfortable now. “So, who are you, then?”

“I'm Jack Frost,” he told me, holding out a hand. My eyes widened, and my jaw took a moment to drop, once again.

“Jack... Frost,” I repeated.

“Yep. That's me.” He kept his hand out, awkwardly waiting. I moved my hand into his, shaking slowly. His hand was cold, too. “You don't know how glad I am to have met you. I thought for sure I'd never be seen...”

“Uhuh,” I nodded. I was still in shock, to be honest.

“When did you first see me?” he asked, still giddy.

“Just a little while ago,” I told him, as I weighed whether or not Jack Frost was real, or if I was just hallucinating. Despite knowing full well that magic... probably... didn't exist, I didn't think hallucinations came this vividly. And even if they did, I would've had some sort of spiral leading into the breakdown, surely.

So. Magic, then. Jack Frost.

“H-How..?” I asked, trying to find my words as the weight of it settled in. My whole life, I'd been pressing down any wild fantasies of magic, and here it was, standing in front of me.

“What?” he asked, looking over with a new light in his eyes. I felt entranced, now that I'd accepted who he was.

“How come I can see you?” I clarified. He paused, blinking in confusion.

“I... I don't know,” he admitted. “But you're the only one I've met who can see me – who can _touch_ me.” I furrowed my brows. A moment later, the sound of an engine running drew my attention. At the same time, my phone vibrated.

 

_Developer: Please, don't say anything about me. I'm just a kid, remember?_

 

I frowned, and put my phone back.

“I, ah... I can see about asking some friends why you can see me,” he offered.

“Who would you ask?” I replied, raising an eyebrow. “I thought nobody could see you.”

“Erm... No _humans_ can see me. But other spirits, like Sandman or North and his yetis – they can see me.”

“Uhh... Who are those?” I asked.

“You... don't know? Sandy makes sure everyone has pleasant dreams, and North is... Well, I- I didn't think _anybody_ could live their life not knowing what Christmas is....” I took a half moment to process it.

“Wait...” I blinked. “You mean- You mean _Santa_ is real?”

“Santa is more of a formal name, but sure,” he said with a grin. “We all are.”

“How many of you _are_ there?”

“Oh, heck if I know. Name a holiday, and there's probably one of us running it. Me, I just play around in the wintertime.”

“Halloween?” I tried.

“Yep.”

“Does the summertime have some kind of... opposite Jack Frost?”

“I... wouldn't know. I tend to go to wherever winter is happening,” he admitted.

“What about Easter? Is there like, a bunny that hides eggs and stuff?”

“Oh, definitely,” he told me, hopping onto his staff in a casual sit. “But if you saw him you'd think he was a kangaroo.” I gaped.

“Wh- So but- hold on, if all these holiday spirits are real, how come my parents always bought the presents, and they always said that none of them were real?”

“Because the parents don't _know_ ,” Jack told me. “The wonder in Christmas, at least, comes from the surprise of it all – the parents will always assume that any extra presents come from somebody else, whereas the kids think that North brings them all. The reason you stop believing in spirits stems from your weird human desire to understand _everything_.”

“What?”

“Like when you use those weird machines, to look inside the brain – you think you can explain what's happening in there, what's different when you sleep and when you don't. But none of you realize that there's nothing scientific about what you're doing. It's magic.”

“But that doesn't mean science doesn't change things,” I pointed out. He shrugged.

“If you say so. But how does science explain this?” he asked, magicking a ball of snow into his hand. I struggled to find an answer, but before I could say a word, he threw it in my face.

“Augh! What was that for?!” I cried, brushing it off my face. I could see blue sparkles in my vision, and felt something pleasant on my cheeks, but I was still cold.

When I looked back at him, Jack seemed shocked.

“You... didn't like that?” he asked.

“It was cold,” I pointed out. “I guess you wouldn't know. Cold isn't pleasant for human skin.”

“But... the magic,” he mumbled. “It always makes the _kids_ laugh...”

“Maybe it doesn't work if I believe in you?”

“I don't know,” he said, sounding glum. “It doesn't make sense. Nothing about you makes sense.”

“Gee, when you put it that way...”

“Right, well, still,” he continued, hopping off his staff. “I'll ask around about how this all works, and I'll come back tomorrow with what my friends say. Can you.... well, can you be here again? You come here pretty often already, so-”

“Yeah, yeah. Like I'd miss out on a chance to see real magic. Trust me, this is, um. This is just as exciting for me as it is for you,” I confessed. If my cheeks hadn't already been red from the cold, they would have certainly been warmed up now.

“So... tomorrow?” he asked.

“Tomorrow.”

 


	5. Conman of Cold

I must've looked like an idiot when I got home. I was covered in snow rather thoroughly, and grinning like... well, like an idiot.

_Magic is real._

Despite having this realization hours ago, it was still leaving my skin feeling tingly.

... Or, apparently, I was just being texted. I pulled out my phone, and the vibrating stopped as I opened the message.

 

_Developer: Did everything move smoothly? The GPS is showing that you have made it home safely._

 

I quickly changed his contact name to Artemis, so I would stop thinking of them as different people, and then typed out my response.

 

_Me: I'm fine – how were you able to see the guy? He said nobody could ever see him before._

_Artemis: Interesting that he would say that. What can you tell me about him?_

_Me: Well, he's not a creep like you were insinuating._

_Artemis: I was able to assume as much from your initial message. A little more detail, if you would. I do have other tasks that require my attention._

_Me: ... Right. Well, sorry to say, I don't think there's a way to get your weather app to predict stuff properly. He makes snowstorms for fun._

_Artemis: Explain._

_Me: I'm guessing you already know, but whatever. He's Jack Frost. He just sort of goes to wherever winter is, and makes it snowy and fun. It's, uh. Magic._

 

I felt silly just typing it out, and his response didn't make me feel any better.

 

_Artemis: Wonderful. You've been duped by a man pretending to be invisible. Perhaps next time you ought to trust your upbringing, rather than the ridiculous notion that magic could be responsible. I could show you a variety of different machines that would easily replicate any 'proof' he might have provided. I trust you didn't tell him anything about me, or offer him anything of yours?_

_Me: He didn't even ask for anything. Aren't you supposed to be the one believing in magic, anyway? He literally balanced on a shepherd's crook for fun!_

_Artemis: Irrelevant. You'll find plenty of tricks online for that sort of charade. What I need you to do is find out how he's making the storms, so that I may devise a way to stop the irregularity of them. Whatever you do, put the notion of magic out of your mind. It will do nothing but hinder my ability to fix Panacea._

 

I spent a few minutes just staring at the texts. I knew if I were to ask anyone else at all, they would undoubtedly side with Artemis on this, but...

How could that man have been conning me? Was he just a really good actor, playing on my wishful thinking? I tried to think of anything he might've done that would prove the existence of magic. Unfortunately, the more I thought about it, the more Artemis's reasoning made sense.

I'd asked right away about the storms, which probably put him on guard. God, and I hadn't even questioned when he'd told me about all these supposedly magical things, too. I'd just figured that since the man was real, his tale was too.

What was wrong with me?

I contemplated not going to the park the next day. I knew Artemis wanted me to meet the man again, to find his real trick, but it sent shivers down my spine to think how easily I'd been fooled.

... but on the other hand, if I didn't go, I would be asking a _child_ to approach this guy. Granted, a real annoying one, who acted like a twenty-some-odd entitled prick, but still a child. I couldn't deny that there were usually children around when the storms started, either.

I sighed, flopping back onto my bed. I needed a plan of action for the next time. I needed to have him show me some kind of storm... I could film it, and he probably wouldn't even notice.

I got back up, looking for a shirt or coat with an upright pocket. After a bit of rummaging, I still couldn't find one, but when I headed for the kitchen, I noticed something on the table. I didn't recognize it at first, since I'd never cared to get one, but apparently my aunt owned a selfie stick.

I tested it out, clipping in my phone. It was an older model, but luckily my phone still clicked into place. Next, I tucked the end of the stick into a hoodie pocket, and looked around for a belt. After a few more minutes of searching, I secured the belt around my midriff, keeping the selfie stick upright.

I was reasonably sure I could halfway zip my coat up to hide the mechanisms of it, but could I hide the camera itself? Jack, or whatever his name was, would undoubtedly be suspicious if he saw a lens.

In the end, I just grabbed a different hoodie that was closer in colour to the camera. I figured that if he did notice, I would just make up an excuse about my pockets.

With a plan now set, I tried to put Jack Frost out of my head for the rest of the day. It was more difficult to do than I'd have liked. During lunch and dinner, my dad asked if I was alright. I told him I was just thinking about the snowstorms.

Naturally, being a science teacher, he tried to give me some completely valid reasons as to why it could suddenly start to snow. _Way to help the situation, dad..._

I went to bed that night, wondering how I had gotten this far in live without ever meeting a conman. I also wondered whether they would all be so charming...

Much to my embarrassment, I wound up having a dream that he was flying me across the city, snowstorms dancing lazily in the path we took. He smiled, looking into my eyes, and said something that I couldn't make out.

I tried to ask what he was saying, but suddenly he dropped me.

_No! Wait, help!!_ I fell, wind whipping past me, as the ground rushed towards me. He caught me, and for a moment I felt thankful – but then he started laughing, taking me higher, and higher.

_What?_ he asked, a sinister tone in his voice. _You didn't like that?_

And then he dropped me again.

I woke up with a short and quiet shriek, my heart pounding. Sunlight streaked through the cracks of the blinds, and I clenched my eyes. Okay. That dream had sucked. I tried to shake it off, summing it up to nerves. Jack was just some guy – he couldn't fly, and he certainly wouldn't catch me off guard today with his little 'magic' tricks.

_C'mon. You've got this. For the... okay, maybe doing it for a bratty kid isn't the best reasoning. To prove it to yourself, then, that you're not just some gullible_ child _anymore._ With this logic in my head, I took a deep breath, grabbing my pre-chosen outfit. I took a quick look in the mirror, giving myself a firm nod.

“You got this,” I whispered.

And then I went to the park.

 


	6. Easter Sunday

My fingers twitched from the cold, as I waited on the swings. I'd wanted to seem more like an adult, and stay off the swingset, but he'd taken a while, and I got bored enough to pump my legs a bit. I sighed, head resting on the chains holding me up.

I'd been waiting for nearly an hour now, and he wasn't here yet. A part of me was wondering why he would show up at all, especially given Artemis's arguments. He had no reason to come back to this park, did he? Especially if he _was_ just a conman. He wouldn't have anything to lose by not showing up. On the contrary, he'd have _everything_ to lose if he _did_ show up and got outed.

 

_Me: I don't think he's gonna show._

 

The response was immediate.

 

_Artemis: Unfortunate. You know what to do if you see him again. Keep your eyes open, especially around groups of children._

_Me: Yeah, whatever. I've got to go do some Easter stuff with my family. My apologies, that you came all the way here for nothing._

 

Admittedly, I didn't really know how far he'd come from, since I never really bothered to learn about the developer. I felt a twang of guilt, but only briefly. He was kind of a jerk anyway, so what did I really care either way?

I hopped off the swing, heading home. So much for my brilliant plan of filming him. Well, whatever. I could still have fun decorating my aunt and uncle's place in weird shades of green, blue and pink.

_Is there like, a bunny that hides eggs and stuff?_

_Oh, definitely._

I sighed, my breath puffing out in front of me. _Liar._ I would be the one putting out eggs this year. Just as my aunt and uncle probably did every other year. They were a part of some volunteer committee, and my dad had volunteered us to help paint them just before they were to be hidden.

And paint I did. When I stepped inside, and my dad handed my a paint brush, I decided to just move on from what had happened and get back to having fun with my family.

I put stripes, squiggles and even a few little smiley faces on those eggs. Red, blue, purple and green – no colour was left out. At some point, my paint brush became forgotten as I began dipping and finger painting, and poking my dad's eggs to be fun.

By late evening, we had plenty of eggs, with extra, and a few added colours in our clothes. My uncle assured me that it was washable, but I almost wanted to keep the stains for the sake of the memories.

“Set your alarms for early tomorrow – those kids like to start looking at eight, and it's a real big park. I'd suggest seven so you have time for breakfast and coffee.”

“Gotcha,” I told my uncle, setting my alarm for a quarter to. I liked to make my own coffee, so that he didn't have to do as much for me. It had caused a small (okay, a big) mess on my first day, but once he had shown me the machine in better detail, I was practically a pro.

I went to bed feeling much better than when I'd woken up. I might've been tricked by a guy the day before, but I hadn't lost anything at all – in fact, I'd gained something. I now had a little bit of experience under my belt, and if I ever met someone who _was_ after something of mine, I would be more suspicious.

I smiled, closing my eyes.

 

I opened them to find Jack sitting above me, his expression carved into a menacing smirk. I tried to sit up, but found that I couldn't.

 _Want to play a game?_ he asked. I looked down at myself, finding that my entire body was covered in ice. Jack was sitting cross-legged on top of the encasement, staring at me evilly.

 _Get away from me!_ I wanted to scream, but my mouth wouldn't listen. Instead, Jack leaned closer, eyes glowing a terrifying blue as his hand reached for my throat. Cold fingers wrapped around my throat and began to block off my air.

 _Let's have some fun,_ I heard him whisper, his icy hair brushing my cheek. My shoulders couldn't even spasm, locked as they were in the ice.

 

And then my alarm went off. I gasped as I sat up – thankfully unhindered, this time. I rubbed my face. Normally, if I needed to give myself a reality check, I might've splashed my face with cold water... but this morning, it didn't feel like an appropriate solution. I stood up, trying to forget the nightmare. I mean, it was Easter, after all. No sense being a downer.

I sighed, heading to the main room to get my coffee. My dad was already in there, trying to stay silent as he made pancakes for his brother and sister-in-law. I turned the coffee machine on and pulled up a chair, as my dad asked quietly about whether I thought our relatives would want apple bits in their pancakes.

I whispered back that he could just do every other with apples, until they woke up. He always used all the apple bits anyway.

The house began to wake up a few minutes later. More lights turned on, voices got louder, and eyes grew brighter as the excitement of Easter morning built up. The pancakes were gone faster than my dad could flip them out, and forgotten even faster once the time came to put on our coats and grab the baskets of eggs that we would be hiding.

“Okay, we usually take the back part of the park. Don't put them in the open, but don't put them in really hard places to find, either – the kids are pretty small, so we don't want them giving up,” my uncle explained. He had given us a quick look at a map of the park, since it was bigger than most. I already had some good ideas about where I could hide eggs – some of my pre-chosen spots were close to a picnic table, so I could readily watch the kids discover them.

“I'm going this way!” I shouted, rushing to the little copse of trees beside a weirdly shaped rock. I dispersed the eggs far and wide. I had quite a few more than I expected, so some were more obvious than I was hoping for. In fact, as I was hiding them, I noticed a few were already here.

Someone must have been here, hiding eggs before me.

Well, whatever. I shivered through my coat, and headed back to grab another coffee – this time, more for warmth than to wake up. It was nearly eight, so I settled into my spot at the picnic table, watching as kids began to meander in. At first, it was only a couple, but in only a minute or two, it felt like a whole school was visiting. I even saw some of the kids from the park I liked to swing at, and I gave them a reassuring smile.

As time passed, and I watched their empty baskets pass me by, my expression drew into a frown. Why weren't they finding the eggs? They weren't even that hard to find!

I stood up, walking to where I'd put them. But... they weren't there. I frowned, looking harder. I was sure I'd put one just around...

I gasped, a hand going to my mouth. Someone had sabotaged the egg hunt. Hidden by the glare of a mucky puddle which was still half frozen laid the remains of at least three or four hard boiled eggs.

I looked up, trying to figure out who would've done this, when I suddenly saw... Jack. He was just standing by a few trees, looking in the distance with what looked like regret. I grabbed one of the eggs and stormed over, forgetting my whole plan about the camera and filming his storms.

“Did _you_ do this?!” I demanded, holding up the ruined art I had made just last night.

“Wh- No!” he insisted, backpedaling. “I- I'm _sorry_ , I... I never meant for-” He cut himself off, looking to the side again, and then in the other direction. His expression seemed absolutely heartbroken... but I knew better.

“Look, _Jack –_ if that's even your real name,” I hissed. “I don't care if you want to make a little snowstorm here and there, but ruining _Easter?_ For fuck's sake, these are _kids!_ ”

“You don't understa-”

“Oh, I think I understand perfectly,” I snapped. “You had a good act, but I know better now.” I gave him a stiff glare, ignoring my gut instinct to apologize immediately and ask what pushed him to this. His lip trembled for another half beat, and he looked to the side one last time, as if looking for salvation. Then, his eyes fell to the ground, and he pulled something out of his pocket, dropping it on the ground. Before I could reach down to see what it was, he soared into the sky, leaving nothing but a slight breeze.

 


	7. Explanations

Artemis answered on the first ring.

“Hello?” I heard some kind of typing in the background, and wondered if I was even worth this kid's full attention.

“You said you could prove that stuff's possible with mechanic stuff,” I blurted out. “What about flying?”

“Flying?” He made a humming noise. “Plenty of options, especially if he could guarantee your attention in a specific spot.”

“Like what? What could you _possibly_ build that would make a guy just _shoot into the air?_ ” He sighed, as if my question was more annoying than thought-provoking.

“Holograms, for one. Did you actually touch him?”

“I- W-well, no, but he dropped-”

“Honestly, I expected better from you. The data you sent indicated someone with what I thought would be at least a somewhat competent human being. Apparently I need to reframe my perspective.” I gritted my teeth. “I can tell you'll only continue to pester me with silly notions of magic being the case, so let me do you a favour. Don't concern yourself with this any longer. I will get to the root of this issue myself, and I will fix Panacea. In the meantime, I suggest you find someone to give you a healthy dose of reality.”

“What is _wrong_ with you?!” I snapped angrily. But it didn't matter. I was shouting at a dial tone. I huffed, trying to rationalize what I'd seen. I knew holograms existed, but they weren't as fancy as in movies. I would've known it was a hologram. Plus, holograms couldn't hold things, and he'd-

That was it! He dropped a little wooden toy!

I stooped down and picked it up. It was a small baby, with big blue eyes. I stared into them, but of course, the little thing didn't tell me anything.

Just that Jack Frost was real.

I paused, wondering if that meant that he'd been telling the truth. That other spirits – Santa, and the Tooth fairy – also existed.

A small smile found its way into my features. Maybe the person who'd left eggs before me had been the Easter bunny himself.

... But why would Jack want to ruin Easter? The kids were devastated, and he'd acted as if he loved them. Was there a chance that he was angry, since none of them could see him?

He'd been sorry, though, so that made no sense. I shook my head, heading to the car. It probably would never make sense, seeing as I didn't even understand magic.

“Ready to go home, kiddo?” my dad asked. I nodded, still lost in thought. Thankfully, my uncle made some kind of comment about the hunt, and the two started talking as we drove home. My aunt occasionally pitched in, but I just stared out the window. A part of me was looking for Jack Frost, but I didn't even know what I would say if I saw him again.

_Sorry, I thought you were a conman, but you can fly, so I guess not!_

This whole situation sucked. I looked in the cup holder beside me, wishing I still had coffee left from this morning. I pouted, craving another cup. I hadn't been sleeping well lately, so I felt like I needed it for more than just the taste this time.

When we stepped inside, I zoned in on the kitchen instantly.

“You making coffee?” my dad asked.

“Yeah, did you want me to make a pot?”

“Yes, please. I couldn't sleep last night, or the one before.” I frowned.

“Me neither,” I admitted, and I got a pot going. “... Dad?”

“What's up?”

“Do you think magic could exist?” I questioned. He pondered it for a while.

“... I think people tend to use the word magic to describe things they don't understand. There's certainly some incredible things happening, but there are always rules and reasons for them.” I nodded. It was pretty much the answer I was expecting, anyway.

A few moments passed, and the coffee machine beeped to let us know that it was done. I quickly poured a cup and holed myself in the guest room, deciding I would just spend some time watching TV or something online.

I quickly got into my favourite show, wishing after half an episode that I had thought to get some munchies. It didn't bother me much though, so I just kept watching until my dad started calling me for dinner. I ate quickly, wanting to get back to my show.

This time, I thoughtfully grabbed myself a bag of chips.

When I got back to my room, I noticed a slight chill in the air. I frowned, but grabbed a blanket and wrapped it around myself, turning my show back on.

A moment later, I felt a light breeze, and looked over to see – of all people – Jack Frost, opening my window. I yelped, knocking over my chips. I pouted, looking down at them.

“Those were my favourite,” I mumbled.

“Sorry,” Jack said, stepping inside after finally getting the window open.

“Er- A-actually, I'm... sorry,” I told him. “When... What I said at the park-”

“It's fine,” he replied. “There's some more important-”

“No, I- I thought you had been lying,” I interrupted.

“Okay, uh, that's nice, but-”

“It- I just didn't know if magic could be real, but then you just suddenly flew off, and-”

“We kind of have bigger things to worry about, here!” he snapped.

“What?”

“There's.... a bad person, who's possibly coming to get you,” he explained.

“Wait... why? And how would you know?”

“He's been targeting the Guardians, but... because you started believing in them, you're keeping them alive.”

“The Guardians?” I asked.

“Four of the holiday spirits,” he replied. “North, Tooth, Bunny, and...” He didn't finish the sentence. “Well. I guess it's three now.”

“Wh- But I believe in the spirits! How come one of them is gone?”

“It's nothing you did, it's... Pitch. He... it doesn't matter. We need to get you safe, and find a way to restore the kids' belief.”

“I... O-okay. How are we supposed to do that?”

“I don't know,” he admitted. “But we have to try.” He headed for the window, but I went to grab my coat. I heard a sudden crash, and winced, opening the door to see some kind of giant sled halfway on the sidewalk.

I rushed forward, seeing who I could only assume were the Guardians. My eyes widened.

 _This is_ not _a trick._

“Ah, is last believer,” North said, smiling weakly. “I'd say is good to meet, but...” He leaned over onto a sword, stumbling.

“Oh, jeez,” I mumbled, stepping forward to help. “I- I don't know how I can help you...”

“Wait...” Jack said, looking around. “Where's Bunny?”

“Right here,” Tooth replied softly, as a small little bunny hopped out. “Easter affected us all, but... Bunny the most.”

“I... I thought you said he was big,” I pointed out, leaning down to pet him. He instantly pushed me away, snapping in an Australian accent.

“Yeah, yeah, but where were ya six hours ago?” he demanded grumpily. I thought back to the failed Easter hunt and felt guilty for a beat.

“I... I might not have believed in you then, but...” I bit my lip, looking over at the others. “I want to help now. What can I do?”

A sudden, chilling laugh slithered down the street.

“Why, there's nothing you _can_ do,” a dark voice said. And then the streetlights began to go out.

 


	8. The Boogeyman

I turned, eyes widening at the sight of this new spirit. His form seemed to blend with the shadows he created, and the only colour across his entire body was the sinister yellow of his eyes. Beside him, horses made of a dark sand slammed their hooves into the ground, seemingly desperate for some action.

Instantly, Jack stood in front of me. The other Guardians attempted to do the same, but by the looks of things, they were having enough trouble just moving. I tried to think of a way out of it, but nothing was coming.

Suddenly, my pocket buzzed. Out of sheer habit, I checked it.

 

_Artemis: Please ensure the road is cleared for our arrival._

_Me: WHAT._

_Artemis: Time is of the essence, here._

 

I mentally groaned, and began trying to push North's sled out of the way. I wound up twisting one of the wings in what was probably definitely a bad way, but it mostly cleared the road, at least.

“What are you doing?” the dark man demanded, obviously upset that I wasn't paying him any attention.

“I dunno, trusting some kid,” I told him. He disappeared into the shadows once I said that, and I frowned, trying to follow the movement. Naturally, I felt a cold hand on my shoulder a moment later, and felt myself freeze up as the man's other hand wrapped around my neck.

“Pitch!” Jack called angrily, pointing a staff in our direction. “Let go of-”

His demands were drowned out by a bulky vehicle suddenly driving towards us all. As it neared, it came to a silent stop. Artemis stepped out, his bodyguard behind him.

“Really,” he said, surveying the scene. “You couldn't handle _one_ mythical spirit until I got here?” His arms were crossed, and I couldn't help but sputter a little.

“You were the one trying to convince me magic wasn't even real, you brat!” I snapped. He sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose.

“Butler, if you would?” The man with him stepped forward. Pitch, uncertain about this, pulled me closer.

“Not another step,” he hissed. I felt some kind of gritty sand travelling along my skin, and I squirmed uncomfortably. Thankfully, he did stop.

... To pull out a gun.

“Butler, does that _look_ like Jack Frost to you?” Artemis asked. Butler frowned.

“Artemis, shouldn't we at least-”

“This is a hostage situation. If you attempt to make a shot, all we'll have is a dead body and a boy's tale of ghosts. We get what we came for.” I frowned, obviously suspicious at this point.

“What are you-”

“Augh!” My breath caught in my throat as Jack cried out. Seeming bewildered, he stared at a dart that was embedded in his leg, stumbling backwards for a few seconds before falling down.

Pitch laughed, menacingly.

“Well, I see my work has been done for me. Say goodbye to your precious Guardians,” he advised.

“Artemis, why are you doing this?! He's the only hope we have left!” I cried. He glanced my way, briefly, before ordering Butler to put Jack in the car. As his faithful manservant followed the order, the boy walked up to me.

“Perhaps he is the only hope for you, and whatever hopeless cause you believe you're fighting for,” he told me. “To me, he is an investment, and nothing more. Who knows? If it doesn't pay off, perhaps I'll give him back to you.” His expression fell into a smirk. “For a price.”

He turned, getting into a car, but he turned to me one last time.

“Don't worry, though, the man holding you has no real reason to kill you. You should get out of this just fine.” He smiled coldly, and closed the door.

They instantly drove off, and for a moment, Pitch didn't seem to know what to do.

Then, suddenly, we were melding into the shadows, and I was being thrown on a pile of golden containers. I hit them roughly, letting out a pained noise.

“Wait here,” he said, face twisted into a glare. “I have another _believer_ to take care of.” He left, as suddenly as he'd brought me here.

I heard some squeaking and looked over to see a bunch of miniature fairies in cages, as well as one specifically that seemed to be waving at me from a globe of some sort. I got up, rushing over.

“Hey, little... erm, fairy. What is it?” The fairy in question was pointing at a light, which seemed... just about where we were supposed to be, actually.

“Uhh... Yes, that's where we are,” I explained. She squeaked in annoyance. “Sorry, I just- I don't understand squeaks.” She sighed – or at least, I assumed it was a sigh – and started crawling towards me instead. Her wings fluttered every now and then, almost like a twitch, but they otherwise seemed to have lost their function.

I held out my hand for her, letting her sit up on my shoulder while I gave the place a look-see. It seemed pretty confusing, with stairs and slopes all around. I thought I could see some kind of exit, but it could just as easily have been a hall to another room. There were chains and cages hanging all around me – which, of course, was where most of the fairies were being held.

I started to climb a staircase, in an attempt to find that hallway, but every path I took seemed to lead me in circles. The little fairy even tried to help me, but I kept finding myself moving in the opposite direction – or else, right back to where I'd started from.

“Augh, what is _wrong_ with this place?!” I growled. I sat at the base of a staircase, putting my face in my hands. A week ago, I would've been ecstatic to find out that magic existed. Now that it was being used to stop me from leaving some kind of evil maniac spirit's lair, I was starting to think ignorance was bliss after all.

I pulled out my phone, a sudden flash of hope enveloping me as I thought that maybe, just maybe....

 _No signal. It figures._ I put it away, fists clenching in anger over what Artemis had done. It baffled me that anyone could be so heartless. That he could look another person in the eye, and decide, just like that, that it wasn't worth the effort to even try and help.

I took a deep breath. _Stay rational. You're going to get out of this, one way or another. Not having magic doesn't mean you don't have your_ own _tricks._ I closed my eyes, trying to think. What did I have, that Pitch didn't?

... I realized, with a shattering blow to my confidence, that I didn't even _know_ , really, what Pitch did or didn't have. I'd have to work with something else, then – something I _did_ know about him.

He was obviously a master of the shadows. He blended into them seamlessly, travelling through them as if teleporting. But what would happen if I pointed a flashlight at him? Would it just annoy him, or could it actually do something?

I decided that it was as good an idea as any, and pulled my phone back out. It was actually some pretty good timing, as less than a minute later, I heard the familiar sound of his dark sands.

 


	9. Precautions

“I trust you've made yourself familiar with the place,” Pitch commented, and I nearly dropped my phone. I quickly tapped the flashlight button, twisting and aiming it towards him.

I sucked in a breath, looking around when I realized that I hadn't hit him with the light at all. He wasn't behind me. I twisted, but there were so many shadows he could be hiding in.

I heard him laugh again.

“You don't really think _that_ little thing would hurt _me_ , do you?” he asked. I looked down and saw claws, moving in the shadows towards me. I quickly aimed the light down at it, but it writhed around behind me. I tried to turn, only to find myself face-to-face with Pitch again.

“Boo,” he whispered, batting my phone to the ground like a cat with its favourite toy. I heard a crack, looking down to see sporadic fizzling of the light. A moment later, the light died entirely.

“Why do you hate the Guardians?” I asked, hoping to prolong whatever horrible fate he had in store for me. His face twisted into a snarl – but thankfully, he decided to actually explain the story, instead of telling me about how I would never see my family again (or something along those lines).

“I used to roam this Earth, feeding off any fear I needed. I was the _king_ the night, and _everyone_ feared me!” he hissed. “Those _Guardians_ of yours put an end to all that. They spread hope to the land, and wonder. _'Don't worry,'_ mothers would say. _'_ _There's no such thing as the Boogeyman.'_ People everywhere stopped seeing me, stopped fearing me. It's been long enough,” he decided.

“It's their turn to not be believed in.” I blinked.

“... Have you ever thought about a different name?” I asked. He turned to me, and snarled as he stepped closer. I instinctively shrunk back, stumbled onto the staircase I'd been sitting on before. He stared at me a moment longer, and I waited for the inevitable. A small part of me was hoping Artemis had been right when he'd driven off.

_The man holding you has no real reason to kill you._

Then, of course, I remembered that the whole thing surrounding this seemed to be that Pitch needed people not to believe in the Guardians. Hypothetically, he'd just come back from... removing the only other believer. I bit my lip, leaning further back as Pitch started towards me.

Leaning would only do so much for me, though. When he came within a few steps of me, I stood up, turning and sprinting up the stairs. I came to a stop as I saw his shadow in front of me, turning and seeing that he wasn't at the base anymore.

I began running down, making it past the base before he did. Every now and then, I would come to a path with one of those nightmare sand horses, and I'd be forced to pick a less suitable path. It felt like I could never escape. Every time I thought I had left him behind, he just showed up in front of me.

 _He's toying with me_ , I realized. He laughed at my expression.

“Finally figured it out, did you?” He stepped closer, a few of his horses materializing behind him.

“But- I thought-”

“What, that I would kill you?” he asked. “Look around you, child! Did I kill the fairies when I locked them in cages?”

“W-well, no,” I replied.

“Until I know for certain that the Guardians are gone, you're more valuable to me alive. Still, it's important to take precautions, I suppose...” He looked me up and down quickly, and snapped his fingers. Instantly, I felt something pulling on the hood of my coat. I turned, trying to pull away as I saw that it was one of the mares that held me. For a moment, I thought I could actually overpower the beast, but then she gave a quick tug that sent me to the floor.

I shouted out as she backed up, to some kind of darkened corridor that I hadn't entered. I briefly thought about calling for help, but who would even hear?

The next thing I knew, I was surrounded by utter and complete darkness.

 

Time passed. I didn't know how much, seeing as I didn't have my phone anymore. I used to wear a watch, but it had been broken years ago. At first, I had tried to find a way out of the room, feeling around the entire place with my hands. I wound up discovering that I was, essentially, in a hole. The walls were startlingly smooth, in complete contrast to the rocky floor. I couldn't reach the ceiling, so I could only assume that the way out was up. Eventually, I sat down, with nowhere to retreat but my mind. I think I might've fallen asleep at some point, but I didn't get any rest. After all, in the lair of the Nightmare King, all I could _have_ were nightmares.

I woke up even more tired than when I'd fallen asleep.

I tried my best to hope, and keep myself thinking rationally. If Pitch thought that there was a chance the Guardians were still alive, that must've meant that Artemis got away, right?

It didn't help much. Artemis could be alive, but he still wasn't interested in helping others. If he bothered to look at my banking information (which I suspected he could easily have access to, seeing as Panacea seemed to have access to everything I did), then he would know that I wasn't exactly able to _pay_ him for anything. I was still paying off my student debt, for Pete's sake.

I heard a scraping noise, and my heart rate spiked.

 _Don't be afraid_ , I told myself. _He feeds off of that_. It didn't matter what I tried to tell myself, though. In the dark, any noise could be any number of things. I felt something bump against my leg, and I nearly jumped.

 _Eat_ , the shadows seemed to whisper at me. Eat? Was that all?

I put my hand on my leg, noting that whatever was there _did_ seem to feel like some kind of ceramic. Tentatively, I ran my finger around the rim, until it bumped into something else. A fork, or spoon, hopefully. I brought the plate as close as I could to my face, knowing I could very easily drop the food if I took chances with what I couldn't see.

I didn't even know what I was eating, I realized. It had the texture of mashed potatoes, making it easy to eat, but it seemed less tasteful. When I finished, I pushed the plate back and pocketed the fork. As I did so, I heard a light squeak.

“What the-” I felt my breath catch as I felt something wriggle its way out. “Little Fairy?” I asked, quietly. I heard a squeak in response. I bit my lip. “Can... Are you able to fly?” Another squeak. “I'll, um... take that as a no, I guess?”

Instead of responding, she began crawling up to my shoulders. I stood up, looking towards the opening in my little hole.

“Okay, how's this to start? If you need to say yes, squeak once, pause, and squeak again. If you need to say no, just squeak the one time.” At first, I was worried that she just didn't understand me, and everything that had happened thus far was circumstantial. Thankfully, she squeaked twice. I breathed a sigh of relief.

“So... do the other Guardians understand you?”

Two squeaks.

“Alright, alright, that's good to know. I know we might not be able to do much from here, but if we work together, I think we can get ourselves out of this,” I told her. “First, though... are you comfortable if I toss you in the air? You can tell me if there's any light up there, and then we might be able to get you out of here.”

A moment passed, and she was silent. For a moment, I was afraid that we wouldn't be able to do this, because she wouldn't be okay with it – but a moment later, she gave me the two-squeak code.

“Okay,” I said, breathing in relief. “So... first, I'll just toss you straight up. Umm, I can't really see you, so if you aren't going to land on the ground up there, you'll have to keep making noise so I can try to catch you.”

After another two squeaks, I took my stance. I didn't want to accidentally throw her into a wall, so I tried to approximate where the centre of the room was before I launched her. I heard continuous squeaking as she flew, and tried to follow it.

I winced as I felt her bounce off my fingertips, hitting the floor.

“Little Fairy! I'm so sorry,” I cried quickly. I patted the ground lightly, trying to find her. A moment later, I felt her tiny hand on my finger, and I brought her back up. “Was.... Did you see any light?” I asked. Again, she responded with two squeaks. I beamed, for the first time in a while.

“Okay. Okay, we can work with this. So... I guess you being alive means the other Guardians probably are, too, right?” She confirmed it, and I nodded along as I continued talking. “Okay. Still not in the best shape, since they're probably no better than when we saw them... And we can't be sure Jack Frost will be able to get away from Artemis Fowl, seeing as that kid seems to have plans for _everything_. So it's probably up to us to make a plan to restore belief – then, presumably, the Guardians will be able to defeat Pitch and help us out. Or... I guess just me, since the plan would need you on the surface.”

I absentmindedly paced around as I thought, and every now and then Little Fairy would try to say something – naturally, I never understood what she was saying. I sat down to think. Whatever plan I gave to Little Fairy had to be a good one, because we probably wouldn't get a second chance at this.

I don't know how long I stayed there, going over the details of what we could and couldn't do. What risks were worth taking? Where would Little Fairy even be able to go?

I tried asking a few questions every couple of minutes, just to try and get a sense of her limits. I knew that in her current state, she couldn't fly – but she seemed perfectly capable of walking or using her arms to climb short distances.

“Do you know any children in the city that might be more willing to believe?” I asked. She thought about this one for a full minute, before squeaking twice. “Do you think you'd be able to get into the child's room?” I didn't think that anyone would _suddenly_ believe in the Tooth Fairy if they found a mini-version of her in the streets, so it would probably be best to find any potential believers at home.

Little Fairy squeaked twice again.

“Okay. It's... it's not the most solid plan, but here it is. I'll get you out of this hole, and you try to walk, crawl or climb your way towards the surface. There was some kind of unreachable hallway, but there were plenty of holes in the walls that could lead there, so you might still make it.

“Once you get to the surface, find the child. You can write them a letter, or draw a picture or something, until they start to believe in you again. Once that happens, you need to get them to help make other kids believe.” I took a deep breath, looking at where I assumed she was sitting. “Can you do that?”

She squeaked twice.

 


	10. Some Dreams Don't Come True

For the first little while after Little Fairy left, I tried to stay calm, but – as if he knew what I was up to – I suddenly began hearing more noises. Noises that weren't partnered with the offering of food. I tried not to let it get to me, but when the quiet noises didn't phase me as much, they became louder and more startling. A few times, I even shrieked, but I held onto my dignity by pretending like nobody had heard those. Any time I calmed down, something new would grate loudly in my ears, making me jump. Eventually, I started to get used to even the loud ones, but once I stopped caring about them, Pitch came back.

“Not getting too comfy, are you?” Pitch asked, and my shoulders hunched.

“The floor is made of rocks,” I pointed out, trying to keep my voice from shaking. “And I have nothing but nightmares. How can I possibly be comfortable?”

“Very well... perhaps that was a poor choice of words,” he admitted. “But, see, it's much better for _me_ if you remain fearful. Perhaps this isn't a chilling enough environment?” I looked up, expecting to see the usual darkness – but for once, I could see two glowing bits of yellow light. It hurt even to look at them, and I felt a shudder go down my spine when I realized they were Pitch's eyes.

“Trust me, it's cold enough,” I told him, still just trying to keep the fear out of my voice. But who was I kidding? He was literally _feeding_ off my fear, so he could obviously tell when I was afraid.

“Hmm.” He continued staring at me, though I turned my eyes away. A moment later, I saw them in my field of vision again, as he'd come down into the pit. “As your friend would say... how about we play a game?” I bit my lip, tasting blood in my mouth. I must've been chewing it already, I supposed.

“Instead of making pointless noises every now and then, I'll make a neighbouring hole, just beside yours. You won't be able to see or get into it, but inside will be one of my little pets,” he explained. I didn't need to ask about the pet.

“Now, they also feed off of fear – they are, after all, an extension of my magic – so she'll be trying her best to find you. She'll likely be working her way through the wall – who knows how long it'll take her to break through?” He laughed, eyes looking me over once more.

“Something tells me that I'll be bringing extra supplies down once she does, though.” And just like that, he disappeared.

For the next... unknown period of time, I sat at one end of my cell, listening to the frustrated neighing of a literal nightmare. Every time I thought I could relax, there was another scraping noise, as the mare presumably attempted to scrape through the walls. I could almost feel myself being drained, as negative emotions flowed through me.

If I could just stop being afraid, then he wouldn't have this power over me – but my very problem was that he _did_ have these powers, while I was just... me.

Eventually, I realized that it would actually be better to stand by the space in the wall that the horse would be coming through. At the very least, I could try and land in a punch or two before it tried to eat me.... or whatever it was that it would do to me.

I was sure it had been hours since Pitch had left this thing with me, when there was suddenly a commotion from above. The nightmare temporarily stopped clawing, but then seemed to have a burst of energy somehow and carved even _faster._ Certain this was just a trick, I tried to calm my heart, knowing that Pitch was only getting stronger from this.

The wall broke. I still couldn't see anything, but I heard a sharp cracking, and felt a piece of rock hit my shin. I sucked in a breath, lifting my foot. When I heard another crack, I stomped down as hard as I could.

I expected the horse to draw back in pain, and to hopefully have a reprieve for a moment or two. Apparently, it didn't hold its form when being stomped on. The sand instead curled around my ankle, and the rest poured in through the hole as it dragged me to the ground.

Pain coursed up my leg, and my head hit the ground hard. I let out a strangled noise as I tried to reach for the sand – to get it away from me – but it poured around my fingers, writhing in excitement. It tore across my face, neck, and any exposed skin it could find. It began to wriggle under the cuffs of my coat, travelling along my arms and shoulders.

It almost felt like there was more sand, suddenly, than the horse even had to use. It was everywhere and anywhere, and it didn't seem to matter what was covered anymore. I felt as though I was simultaneously being buried alive and scratched to death.

I screamed out, clawing at my own skin as I tried to keep the sand off. Somewhere in the back of my mind, I knew I was probably only doing more damage, but I tore my nails across myself nonetheless. Somewhere, in the corner of my mind, I registered the sound of somebody else screaming – or it might have been squeaking – but I couldn't focus, or even think, about anything other than the nightmare that I couldn't fight off.

Eventually, I stopped feeling the sand in some places – seemingly random, but at this point I would take any relief I could get.

My shouts died down, and I felt my muscles begin to relax – I realized, dimly, that I just... couldn't move them anymore. I saw two glowing eyes above me, staring intently, as an artist might when critiquing their work.

I thought I heard Pitch say something as well, but that was probably just my imagination.

 _Little Fairy... didn't make it,_ I realized. _Jack... and the Guardians... they aren't coming._

And then, my vision went dark again. But that was nothing new.

 


	11. My Name is Baby Tooth

Baby Tooth – known to the sole believer as Little Fairy – took a look around as soon as she landed outside the hole. It had taken a few shots, which the believer had profusely apologized for, but eventually she was able to see just the barest amount of light spilling from down the hall.

She wished, briefly, for the use of her wings, as her legs weren't used to walking so far – but Toothiana was counting on her, and now, so was the believer. Baby Tooth didn't dream, as the mythical spirits didn't need to sleep, but she'd still been in the darkness, and she had listened to the believer's cries.

When she came to the main hall of Pitch's lair, she took a moment to observe her sisters, still sitting in their cages. If only she could call out to them them, to tell them that help would soon be on the way... but for now, she needed to stay hidden.

As it turned out, the exit was easier to find than she expected. A stalagmite was protruding from the floor, going so far as to push up into the walkway of the opening above. Certainly, the believer wouldn't have been able to climb up without breaking it – but Baby Tooth was perfectly capable.

That's not to say it wasn't difficult. After all, Baby Tooth was perhaps two inches in height, and the hallway was several feet up. Past that, as she knew from a previous flight in with Jack, would be yet another long climb – one that was liable to take an entire day, if she was being generous.

Sparing just a single glance upward, Baby Tooth steeled herself.

And then she climbed.

Her limbs, already weak from the disbelief of millions of children, ached in protest before she had even made it halfway up the first stalagmite. She pushed on, an image of Jamie residing in her mind. There was a chance, however small, that there was still just one more believer out there.

What felt like hours later, her tiny fingers grasped the edge of the floor above. If she pretended it was a halfway mark instead of a quarter or eighth, it almost felt like it would be worth it to push on without a break. She waddled around what may have been pebbles – but may as well have been boulders – as she made her way to the vertical stretch leading back to Burgess.

Staring up, into the sky, Baby Tooth took a moment to let her eyes adjust. Perhaps two. Her arms were sore, and it would probably be better to give them the extra rest rather than fall when she was partway up.

Still, the last believer was waiting on her, so she couldn't justify waiting for too long. As it was, this was going to take quite a bit of time. She put her hand on the first clump of hardened dirt, telling herself not to look up.

A part of her was hoping that the little boy, Artemis, would release Jack after whatever it was he needed. Jack would be able to find this place, and get Baby Tooth out. Together, they would help the children start to believe again.

But of course, Jack might not even realize she was still stranded here, climbing a hole that stretched to eternity. His concern would be the Guardians, so he would most likely skip the part about saving Baby Tooth, and just go right to Jamie.

She sighed, lifting her foot and grabbing another clump of dirt. One foot in front of the other, as humans would say. She wasn't sure at this point whether it was worse to be stuck in a dark box, or climbing this monstrous cliff.

A few times, she broke her own promise to not look up, and was disappointed equally in her lack of resolve and progress. Despite this, she continued on. Hours passed by, and she occasionally was forced into sitting on a larger outcropping to let her arms recover, but still she pressed on.

By the time she reached the surface, she wasn't sure how much time had passed. She wasn't even entirely sure about her exact location. Everything looked so much different from the ground...

She started off by making her way to the street. It wasn't so hard to find, since there was plenty of noise coming from the cars driving by. She made sure to stay off the sidewalk, though, to avoid having anything dropped on her.

For a few minutes, she stood, watching people pass by. There were certainly plenty of children around, but she couldn't see Jamie. She tried to recall the path Jack had taken when he'd flown from Jamie's house to the lair, but they had both been flying at the time, so she only had a vague direction.

A vague direction would have to do. She started walking, momentarily glad that her arms could finally rest. As she went further and further, however, her legs began to ache. How could humans travel such distances without wings? It was unfathomable.

As she walked, it briefly occurred to her that Pitch, possibly, would be able to see her at nighttime. She knew he didn't come up during the day, as there was too much light, but what would happen when the sun went down?

Thankfully, it didn't seem to matter, as she suddenly caught sight of a familiar house.

“Jamie,” she breathed, eyes travelling to the window. He was in his room already, staring out the window as if bored. She began to run, ignoring the protest in her legs. Though she couldn't see a path that would get her into the door, she _did_ see a basketball net that was touching the roof of the house. From there, she would be able to get into Jamie's room.

Back to climbing it was, then. The basketball net had some slanted parts at the back that helped with the climbing – otherwise it would've been like climbing a completely smooth wall. Impossible.

She continued on, feeling the air get a little colder as she got closer to the top. The day was nearly over, which would make Pitch stronger. She had to act quickly.

She skittered across the roof, much like a mouse might have, and hopped onto Jamie's windowsill. He was no longer sitting at the window, but at his desk, doodling a picture idly. Baby Tooth jumped down, taking the brunt of the fall. She briefly worried that she wouldn't be able to convince Jamie that something magical was happening, but spared the thought.

She _had_ to make him believe.

Which, of course, was how she found herself climbing, _yet again_ , to reach a place she would've normally had no trouble flying to. Thankfully, he had some sort of lamp whose cord was dangling off the edge, so Baby Tooth was able to climb along that until she found herself on his desk.

Much to her distress, he was drawing a picture of a sad boy, with dark shapes around him. She rushed to his pencil case, which was wide open and full of colours. Grabbing a red pencil crayon, she waddled back to his paper, where she nearly tripped over the lip of the paper. Placing the tip of the pencil down, she let the body of it rest against her shoulder.

It was somewhat heavy, but with a bit of effort, she was able to draw a line. When she felt she'd gone far enough, she began to turn, walking in a new direction to guide the colour.

“What the...” Jamie gasped as he noticed the line being drawn. He remained frozen in place, watching it curve, this way and that, until it became a shape that he could recognize. “A... tooth..?” His tongue idly felt for the gap in his mouth where he'd recently lost one, and the memory of the Guardians came rushing back.

Instantly, Baby Tooth became visible, and he gasped.

“You're... real!” he whispered, beaming. She nodded, dropping the pencil. “That means... it wasn't a dream! The Easter Bunny, Santa – they're all real!”

“Finally,” she replied. “Someone gets it.”

“I can't wait to tell the others,” he continued, as if she hadn't spoken. She knew better than to be offended, though – humans couldn't understand fairies, after all. “But... where are the others?”

She looked uncertain about how to reply, staring out the window for a moment. Instead of trying to speak, she made a motion over her eyes, opening them as wide as she could.

“Uh... How about something else?” Jamie asked. “Here, I'll write letters, and you point to them. Then, you can talk to me like that.” She nodded, and watched as he spread them all across the page.

 _Great_ , she thought. _More walking._ But at least now she would be able to speak with Jamie.

“So... what happened with Easter?” he asked.

_Boogeyman._

“The Boogeyman ruined Easter?”

_Yes. Need help._

“You... need my help? For what?”

 _Kids don't believe Easter._ This particular sentence took achingly long to spell out, but it was worth getting the message across. He stared at Baby Tooth for a few moments longer, before standing up.

“Then let's go tell them what's real,” he said, a smile growing on his face.

 


	12. Artemis Fowl, the Second

When Artemis initially drove away with Jack Frost in his car, he had felt proud. If anyone would be able to find his father, it would be this man. As predicted, when a person believed in Jack, objects they held or threw also affected him.

Not that Artemis had ever been wrong before. Everything about this plan had gone perfectly.

 _Except for..._ A pang of guilt crept into his mind. After everything he had said, to mask both his intentions and the existence of magic... the beta tester had still believed. He'd known this as well, of course, since Panacea had been sending him a feed of any information he requested. It didn't stop the frustration of leaving behind someone who had chosen to trust him in a dangerous situation.

 _It's not my fault_ , he decided. _Really, the beta tester shouldn't have trusted me in the first place._ It didn't occur to him that even now, he was distancing himself by using the term 'beta tester,' in place of a name he had seen on his cell phone screen a thousand times.

“Artemis...” Butler started, as they drew near to their destination. “Are you sure we didn't just...” He hesitated, not sure he wanted to question whether they had, technically, taken part in murder. There were many questionable things Butler was comfortable with, but a loss of life was not one of them.

“I assure you, my friend, Pitch has no reason to take the life of any believer, unless he is convinced it is the _last_ believer. No lives will be lost tonight.” Butler didn't respond, but then, he didn't need to. He simply had to park, and open the storage locker they had rented out. Once they had brought Jack Frost inside, Butler shut the door and turned on the lights.

It took some time to adjust to the lighting, as Artemis hadn't been kidding about his research. Lights were placed strategically around the room to reduce shadows, and any that had different strength settings were put in the brightest possible state.

“Nhh...”

“Our friend is waking up,” Butler noted.

“Yes, I can see that. Ensure he doesn't make any rash moves, would you? We only have one shot at this.” Before Jack was able to get his bearings, Butler had expertly pulled his arms behind his back. His staff, of course, was in the trunk of the car – possibly the most secure place in the entire storage facility.

As Butler finished tying the final knot, Jack's eyes opened sleepily.

“Ah, he's awake,” Artemis noted, a smug smirk on his face.

“Wh- Where am I? Who are you?!” Jack instantly demanded.

“Artemis Fowl the Second. A pleasure to meet you.” One look at the boy's stance made his hair stand up. He wore a professional suit and tie, and his expression was cold enough to make even Jack shiver.

“What do you want with me?” he asked. Behind his back, he attempted to channel his energy to freeze the wires around his wrists – but without his staff, his powers were too difficult to control.

“A simple transaction, that's all,” Artemis replied. “I need you to find my father. Once you do, you may go free.” Jack frowned, still idly struggling with the wires.

“That's it?”

“Of course. Naturally, should you refuse, there will be consequences,” he explained. “After all... by the looks of things, you only _have_ one other believer, besides me – and I believe Pitch is the one currently in control of _that_ situation.” Jack paled, breathing sharply.

“I- I have to find Pitch, then!” he snapped. “He could be-”

“Believe me, so long as I am still alive, he has no reason to resort to murder. Now, seeing as he _is_ the King of Nightmares, I do believe that offers you extra incentive to find my father, does it not?”

“You're insane,” Jack mumbled. “My friends are in danger, and you're trying to bargain?!”

“Not trying to,” Artemis corrected. “I _am_. See, my father is also in danger. The longer you waste worrying about your friends, the more likely it is that _my father_ will be _dead_ by the time you find him.” He waited a moment or two, to let the information sink in. “Now, I'll ask you again. Do we have a deal?”

“Do _I_ have a _choice?_ ”

“Naturally. Everything is a choice. I can ensure you don't leave the specific areas you need to search in – but only _you_ can _choose_ to help find my father.” Jack took a deep breath, despite not actually needing to breathe.

“... Fine. I'll help you, and then I need to come back to save everyone else.”

“Very well,” Artemis agreed. “Butler, would you like to do the honours?” Jack shuffled closer to the wall as the giant approached him with some sort of band.

“Whoa, what is he-”

“Simply insurance,” Artemis explained. “You have a habit of travelling lengthy distances with the wind. This will prevent you from going more than approximately... one thousand kilometres away from us. We've made it resistant to cold and humidity, obviously. I must admit, it took quite a bit of time and effort to create.”

“And this comes _off_ , right?”

“When I decide to take it off, yes,” he replied.

Butler put the band on his ankle.

 


	13. Artemis Fowl, the First

The band had been put on _days_ ago. As soon as the sun had risen, Jack had been put on a private jet and flown all the way to Ireland. From there, they took another plane, then a train, and a taxi, until they found themselves at a hotel in Russia.

And then the search had begun. Jack had been given a photo of Artemis Fowl Senior, and began travelling along the Murmansk bay. At first, he had wanted to go as quickly as possibly, skimming over the shoreline with the wind pulling him along.

Naturally, he hadn't seen anything. So he went back. He checked in the water, snow and ice, finding nothing in his travels. Well... nothing, except for the wreckage of the Fowl Star.

It had been underwater for a while, and Jack didn't particularly want to go inside, but the thought of the Guardians pushed him forward.

He winced at the sight before him as soon as he swum inside. There weren't many people on board, by the looks of things, but – counting one skeleton on the ocean floor beside the wreckage, he counted four dead total.

That day, he'd returned with the bad news, expecting to be consoling a boy for the loss of his father, and moving on to try and save his friends. As Artemis tended to, however, he completely defied Jack's expectations.

“Wondrous news,” he murmured, focused on some sort of painting he was working on. Beside him was a laptop, zoomed into a completed version of the same image he was creating.

“W- Wondrous?! I thought you said-”

“Need I remind you, Frost, that there were five people on that ship? My father is still out there. Find him.”

“But you can't possibly think- I mean, there's no way he would still be-”

“ _Find him_ ,” Artemis snapped, in a rare show of emotions. Jack left the room, finding his resolve draining. He'd already _looked._ Night and day, he had been searching, while Artemis holed himself up in a room that had no shadows – to ensure that Pitch didn't find him. He _claimed_ that he could help restore belief to the children once the search was done, as if that would offer extra incentive, but it wasn't as if Jack hadn't been trying already.

When he went out next, he decided on a different tactic. _If_ Artemis's father was alive, it would be because someone had found him, and taken him in. Someone who had been on the shores that night, most likely...

And just like that, he had a new starting point. He decided to speak to Butler, as Artemis refused to even consider having an ounce of respect in his conversations. Furthermore, Butler seemed more likely to know about whoever had shot down the Fowl Star.

Sure enough, after a half hour of discussions and online searching, as well as several favours being called in, Jack was headed out again. This time, he wouldn't come back – not without knowing the exact location of Artemis Fowl Senior.

Thankfully, he was able to fulfill _this_ self-made promise. It took another few hours of searching, as he only had a vague section of town to go off of, but eventually he found himself sitting at the window of an apartment. It was supposedly only owned by two men, but they seemed to have an _unusually_ sleepy friend who was, quite literally, always using the guestroom. After climbing in through the window for a closer look, he pulled out the picture to compare it. It was almost a perfect match. The man was rather dishevelled, but other than that, Jack was certain that it was Artemis Fowl Senior. He flew back to the hotel as quickly as he could.

“Artemis!” he called, entering through the window – one of the few things he liked to do to annoy the young boy. As expected, Artemis's expression turned sour at the cold chill sweeping across the room.

“What is it?” he asked, in a no-nonsense manner.

“I've found him.” The frown left his face. For the first time since Jack had known him, he looked... like a little boy. A boy that just wanted to see his father again.

Then his expression hardened again.

“Tell me everything.”

Thus began the planning of his father's rescue. Now that they knew _where_ he was, he needed to figure out _how_ to get him back. At first, Artemis wanted Jack to stay and help with the rescue – but as Butler pointed out, Jack couldn't interact with anyone who didn't believe in him, which meant all he could really do was freeze things. Furthermore, Jack had already fulfilled his end of the deal.

Obviously, the boy still insisted that he could still be of use, but they were all suddenly interrupted.

“Incoming alert,” a voice said – one that, had Jack been paying attention, he may have recognized as _Swooped Girl's_. Artemis, curious, pulled out his phone to find his own version of Panacea sending the message. His eyes widened, slightly, before he turned the phone off. He took a deep breath, looking troubled.

“... Perhaps you can go, after all,” he stated, and Jack had a sick feeling in his stomach. “Events in Burgess have... changed.”

“Artemis... what happened?” Jack asked, frozen on the spot. The silence was palpable. Butler, noting the expression on his charge's face, quickly removed the band on Jack's ankle. He then reached over to Artemis, hand held out. Wordlessly, the boy handed over his phone.

It took a moment for Butler to unlock it, but his free hand clenched into a fist when he read the alert.

 

_Panacea Alert: Beta Tester 0925 is displaying auditory signs of distress. Emergency signal has been activated. If unable to contact Beta Tester 0925, it is recommended that you contact local authorities._

 

A little red dot pinpointed the estimated area that the signal had been sent from – unfortunately, though Panacea was an incredible little application, the emergency signal it sent out lasted for exactly the amount of time it took to send out a potentially life-saving alert, and that was it. Testers didn't even know the feature existed, as it overrode their phones' typical settings to connect to a personal satellite Artemis used for his own phone.

“The beta tester is in danger,” Artemis murmured aloud, his eyes on the floor. Jack felt a lump form in his throat. He contemplated, just for a moment, saying something insulting to Artemis – but time was limited, so he simply leapt out through the window, letting the wind carry him home as fast as it could.

“It... doesn't make sense, though,” Artemis continued, mostly for his own sake. “There was no reason for-”

“Artemis,” Butler snapped. “There's no sense going over what you miscalculated. Don't you think we have an obligation to help? Your father is not in immediate danger. Those men have no way of knowing that we've found him. What we _do_ know is that someone else is screaming now, and we are partially _responsible_ for it.”

A part of Artemis wanted to be stubborn. His father ought to be their first concern. But the rational part of him knew that all of Butler's points were correct. Whatever was happening to the beta tester...

He shook his head.

“Back to America, then,” he decided. He took one last look through the window Jack had left open, before turning. Butler closed the window.

 


	14. Guardians

Unbeknownst to Artemis, several children in Burgess were already starting to believe again, and likely wouldn't even need his help. Led only by a small fairy, they marched down the streets, calling to their friends through windows as they collected themselves. As the majority of children had been disappointed by Bunny, and not Tooth, the little fairies soon regained their flight capabilities.

Back at Tooth Palace, this fact did not escape Toothiana. She headed out, soon to be met by North and Bunny as they felt their powers slowly returning. Once the three joined the children, it became apparent that there was one other spirit becoming aware of the rising levels of belief. Pitch.

His laughter began to echo across the streets, and his shadows rose up once again. This time, the Guardians came forward in confidence, bringing forward yetis, little fairies and giant stone eggs. As the group faced Pitch, a new battle cry was called out. Everyone turned their heads to see Jack, flying straight for the Nightmare King.

The battle begun. Shadows began to attack relentlessly, but the Guardians and children alike fought back. Baby Tooth, however, flew straight back to the lair Pitch called home, opening the cages of her sisters. The little fairies spewed out like water, zoning in on the golden containers – the capsules holding all the children's teeth and memories.

As they flooded the world with memories, the Guardians became stronger than ever. The children refused to stop dreaming, and believing in the ones who protected them. Their hopes and dreams were so strong, in fact, that a miracle happened.

Sandy returned.

The battle was short lived after that, as Sandy began to face Pitch, with a renewed spirit. He was knocked out for a short time, and Sandy quickly brought dreams back into the world. Jack quickly started a snowball fight, to distract the kids.

Not long after, Pitch woke up. Jack strode over to him quickly, staring him down.

“You wanna tell me where you put the first believer?” he asked. From behind, Artemis and Butler arrived, looking slightly upset that they had missed out on the chance to help. Pitch grinned, certain the tides were about to turn once more. He stood up, wearing a wicked grin.

“Oh, the one who was able to _see_ you?” He chuckled, summoning one of his Fearlings. “Take a guess.” He looked to Artemis Fowl. “I suppose you're here for a certain someone?” Jack turned, freezing when he saw the boy.

“Why, yes, I am.” He signalled his bodyguard, and much to everyone's surprise, it was Pitch who was shot down. The Guardians crowded around the man, staring him down. Pitch held a hand over the wound, but otherwise acted unphased.

“Now, how about we try this again?” North asked.

“Where is Jack's first believer?” Tooth demanded.

“You think that you've won, just because they still believe in you?” Pitch asked, snarling. “My Fearlings are still here – they're not _done_ with you.” Even as he spoke, though, a few of the dark horses seemed to smell something else, and trotted away.

“Can't be _my_ fear they're smelling,” North taunted. “I'm not afraid.”

“I'm certainly not,” admitted Jack. “And by the looks of things, they aren't holding any loyalty to you anymore, either.” A few more of the Fearlings turned and began galloping away. Sandy and Tooth smirked, looking towards Pitch with an expression much like the one Artemis often wore after a successful con.

Then, instead of attacking the Guardians, Artemis Fowl, or even Pitch himself, the last of the Fearlings turned, fleeing the scene.

“What are you _doing_?!” he screamed, pushing himself up. He grimaced, but the expression was quickly replaced by a furious glare. “You're supposed to _feed_ off of fear, not _feel_ it!” He stiffened, as he realized where his beloved creatures were headed. “No... Stand down!” he demanded, instantly chasing after them.

“Oh, dear,” Artemis mumbled, his face growing a shade paler. “I... don't think the horses were actually _afraid_ of anything.” Jack suddenly sucked in a breath, coming to the same conclusion.

“Oh, no,” he whispered, and shot off into the air. He landed down in a familiar clearing only moments later, but there was no trace of the hole leading to Pitch's lair. Even the bed frame it had been hiding under was just... gone. “No!” he shouted, as if that would open the entrance up for him. He slammed his staff into the ground, but to no avail.

Tooth was the first to arrive, settling down gently. She appeared to be both sombre and confused – possibly because she didn't know what this place was supposed to be.

Next came Sandy, who put a hand on the earth. He flinched back a moment later, looking sadly towards Jack and shaking his head. He wouldn't be able to get them through, either.

North arrived a few moments later, landing his sleigh with much more accuracy than before. Bunny, Butler and Artemis all hopped out of the back, looking slightly sick. As soon as Bunny took in the scene, he sniffed the air, knowing that something wasn't right.

“Bunny,” Jack said, almost inaudibly. “I... C-can you... dig a hole?” Bunny held back a snide remark about rabbits and holes, knowing already why Jack was asking.

“Aye, mate, but... y'might not like what we find.”

“Just do it,” Jack whispered.

With a sigh, Bunny tapped his foot twice on the ground. His tunnels tended to automatically lead home, but with children's renewed belief in him, he was able to control it so that it simply... stopped, once it found Pitch's cave.

Jack was the first to fly in, and the others followed quickly behind. The cages hanging from the ceiling were empty, and though the fairies had fled, they had left most of the teeth behind. The group of unlikely allies spread out, looking high and low for any trace of Jack's first believer.

Artemis paused in front of the globe, which still glowed brightly with the lights of the believers. Off to the side, he noticed a discarded phone. He recognized it immediately, of course.

He picked it up, wincing as it automatically lit up with the time – and a background that showed the beta tester smiling alongside an older man. Artemis suddenly felt a pang of guilt. This man – who was, of course, the father – had been missing his child for _days_... and Artemis was responsible.

 _Not for long_ , he decided. _I will_ personally _make sure that he gets his child back._

He entered the darkest hall he saw, turning on a flashlight on his phone. The path twisted a few times, until his phone light was the only thing illuminating the space around him. Still, he continued on, more certain than ever that this would be the right path.

His light suddenly dropped off, and Artemis noted that he was looking at a wide hole, simply dug into the ground. He pointed the flashlight in, nearly dropping his phone as his eyes registered what was at the bottom.

He had found the beta tester.

More accurately, he had found the beta tester's body.

 


End file.
